is a yamashiro, or castle

Japanese castle

' were fortresses composed primarily of wood and stone. They evolved from the wooden stockades of earlier centuries, and came into their best-known form in the 16th century...

 situated on a hill, located in Izushi

Izushi, Hyogo

was a town located in the former Izushi District, Hyōgo, Japan.On April 1, 2005 Izushi, along with the towns of Kinosaki, Hidaka and Takeno, all from Kinosaki District, and the town of Tantō, also from Izushi District, was merged into the expanded city of Toyooka and no longer exists as an...

, Hyogo Prefecture

Hyogo Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region on Honshū island. The capital is Kobe.The prefecture's name was previously alternately spelled as Hiogo.- History :...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

History

For more than 200 years the Yamana Family resided at Konosumi Castle. In 1569 the castle fell to attacks by Oda Nobunaga's successor Toyotomi Hideyoshi. After the fall of Konosumi Castle, Yamana Suketoyo built another at Mt. Ariko to the Southeast, but it too fell to Hideyoshi in 1580. In 1604 Koide Yoshihide built Izushi castle at the base of Mt. Ariko.

In 1979 a corner yagura in the Honmaru and the Tojomon were rebuilt. On the castle grounds you'll also find a small shrine. The bright red Torii gate makes a nice contrast with the castle walls. Izushi Castle is a well known spot in the spring for viewing cherry blossoms. On November 3 they have a castle festival with a mock sankin kotai presentation.

Izushi Castle itself is small with no one particular sightseeing point. However, the castle town is a calm, quiet town with old samurai homes and shops that remind you of the Edo Period. Rice fields and nature spread out around the town. Izushisara Soba is a tasty local dish. Have some soba while watching the view of the town and let your imagination slip back into the Edo Period. On weekends, the town tends to swell with tourists. It provides a nice small trip.

Today

In 1979, the Tojomon (Tojo gate) and the Nishisumiyagura

Yagura

Yagura is the Japanese word for "tower" or "turret." The word is most often seen in reference to structures within Japanese castle compounds, but can be used in a variety of other situations as well. The bandstand tower erected for Bon Festival is often called a yagura, as are similar structures...

 in the honmaru were re-built. Besides these reconstructions, only the castle's ruins still remain, though the city of Izushi retains its grid layout which was arranged for militatry purposes around the castle. A shrine is sited within the ruins, with 37 torii

Torii

A is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the profane to the sacred...

 and 157 stone steps leading up to it. On the remains of the mihariyagura stands the Shinkoro, a traditional Japanese wooden clock tower. Following the Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration

The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...

, a western-style clock was installed in it. It is seen as the symbol of the town.

Sources

• http://www.hyogo-tourism.jp/english/tajima/index.html
• http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/columns/0005/lens137.htm
• http://www.jnto.go.jp/tourism/en/57.html
• http://www.jcastle.info/castle/profile/24-Izushi-Castle